Monsoon
Cup Match Racing Championship 2006
World Match Racing Tour 2006-07
Press Releases and AY Race Reports
World Match Racing Tour 2006-07
Press Releases and AY Race Reports
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Monsoon
Cup Match Racing Championship 2006 World Match Racing Tour 2006-07 Press Releases and AY Race Reports |
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2nd
Monsoon Cup - WMRT 06 - 07
RACING LIVE ON SAIL.TV If you missed the Monsoon Cup 06 live coverage on TV go to the World Tour’s broadband Internet channel at www.Sail.tv or click on the TV icon in the left margin of the World Tour Website at www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com
Racing got away on time between the young bulls, pitting 29 year-old Ian Williams (GBR) Team Pindar against 30 year-old Mathieu Richard (FRA) Saba Sailing Team. The old bulls or veteran match racers sees a pair of 46 year-olds squaring off, Peter Gilmour (AUS), PST versus Peter Holmberg (ISV), Alinghi. The light land breeze and strong out going current proved to be very testing at the top mark and after some procrastination the umpires called of both matches. When racing resumed Williams got the better of Richard at the start after pushing them up into the startboat and getting caught up on the anchor line. Despite all this Richard fought back and got within range but a bit to late as Williams glided across the line to make it 1-0. Even worse was to come on the Gilmour - Holmberg start when Gilmour got the rudder stuck up on the stern anchor, then hit the start boat and had to get assistance from the jury boat to become entangled. All this earned Gilmour a black flag as Holmberg sailed happily around the course to make it 1-0.
Petite Finals - With what looked like better boatspeed Williams led around the first lap and despite Gilmour throwing everything at Williams including dummy tacks up the second beat and covering gybes downwind, Williams managed to cross the finish line eight boat lengths in front to go up 1-0. With allot of agression at the mark roundings Gilmour inflicts two penalties on Williams to even up the score to 1-1. Williams won the third race to finish up third and Gilmour had to settle on forth.
The second race of the final was extended to three laps as the breeze has increased and the course needs to be lengthened to deliver a fair race. In what seemed like a controversial start which the umpires signaled green, Holmberg came out of the scrap with a clear advantage. With the breeze increasing and the sun shining the finals are sailed in the best weather of the week to deliver a remarkable spectacle for the large crowd assembled at this purpose built sailing stadium. After nearly missing out on the cut after the round robin, Holmberg's crew have responded with a second race win to level up the score with Richard 1-1.
Race four and as if things were not hot enough already the pre-start was close with Holmberg leading off the line. Hunting tacktics were employed and after one round Richard edged in front at the top mark but some confusion with a moored super yacht saw Richard awarded a penalty. Richard extended his lead and this time with enough distance to execute the penalty, crossed the line in front to even up the score 2-2. So after a few heart palpitations they went into the fifth and final race decider. Race five decider - Taking the windward berth off the startline Holmberg held onto the advantage despite Richard trying everything to get back into the race. After doing two more tacks than Holmberg, Richard trailed by 10 seconds at each mark. At the end it was Holmberg by a little over a boat length to claim the 2nd Monsoon Cup and the MYR250,000 (approx. US$68,700) first place prizemoney. Wow what an exciting and pulsating final round and our congratulations must go to the winners and the organisors of this fantastic event.
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RACING LIVE ON SAIL.TV Each day the Monsoon Cup is underway the racing can be viewed live on the World Tour’s broadband Internet channel at www.Sail.tv. Access the feed by visiting the World Tour Web site at www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com and clicking on the TV icon in the left margin of the page, or by visiting www.Sail.tv Then there was eight and then only four...
Allot of other things are happening here as well as the sailing. Cultural exhibitions, souvenir shops, sponsors parties, a George Benson concert to raise funds for PRIDE (a charity fighting breast cancer) at MR100k per table of ten and Jean Todt form Ferrari fame has received the Datuk Seri title from the Sultan of Terengganu. This will match girlfriend Datuk Michelle Yeoh's title and puts him in a good position to become the ex Bond girls husband.
When racing did resume after the sea breeze came in, Peter Gilmour went out full of determination to defend the title and made quick work of Richard and Minoprio in their re-sailed matches. This elevated him to third place and completed the round robin. Unfortunately for Spithill, Koo, Minoprio and Tan it is the end of racing for them but I'm sure they are all the more better off for the valuable experience gained from competing on a Grade 1 event in tricky conditions.
Williams tried to catch Col out at the start of race 2 of the quarter finals but both ended up over the line. Williams then took advantage of the situation on the right hand side and streaked of with a handy lead to win their match and give them a handy 2-0 lead.
Gilmour split tacks with Cian in the second match up and trailed closely behind for most the race. Making good ground down the last spinnaker run to close the gap and eventually win by a hairs breath to lead 2-0. A very close race followed between Hansen and Richard with Richard coming out on top this time to even up the score at 1-1. Williams has very good boat speed and after inflicting a penalty on Col led around the course to make it 3-0 and advance into the semi final. Gilmour did the same to beat Cian 3-0 but the closeness of the racing does not show in the results. Holmberg then went all out to make it 3-1 with Bank to make a bigger comeback than Lazarus after almost missing out on the cut earlier and now proceeding onto the semi final. Both Hansen and Richard were determined to get the better of each other and evened up the score at 2-2 to become the only match to go the full distance of five races. Richard then came off the start line with the windward berth and a tacking and covering duel proceeded on up the windward beat. Hanson tried desperately to close down the 10 meter deficit but Richard remained more than ever determined to hold of the challenge and crossed the finish line by the same margin to make it 3-2. This makes the semi-final
pairings of Ian Williams (GBR) Team Pinda versus Mathieu Richard (FRA)
Saba Sailing and defending champion Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST to face of
against Peter Holmberg (ISV) Alinghi with the winners going into the finals
and the losers having a petit final to determine third and fourth placing's.
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The harsh realities of match racing... Tiffany Koo being gifted a win on her birthday and debut race in a Grade 1 match racing event has been a dream run, but the harsh realities of match racing can be both cruel and very rewarding at the same time. Ask any match racer about the highs and lows of their career and you can be entertained for hours. Competing against the best teams in the world is not an easy task. There is only one winner and twelve competing teams. Some have never won a match racing event and others have fallen by the wayside despite competing for many years. Adapting to the vagaries of the weather conditions can play a big part in winning but most of all generating the teamwork to produce good boatspeed and the necessary skills in getting a good start will usually win the day.
At the end of nine flights we have only reached half way of the round robin program. Sixty six races make up the entire program before four competitors are eliminated. With the changing weather patterns the race committee are stretched to complete the program. The stormy weather has been replaced by sunshine and 5 to 6 knots of wind allowing several flights in quick succession to be fired off. Highlights of the remaining flights include Malaysia's Tiffany Koo nearly toppling James Spithill only to be overtaken on the last few meters leading to the finish line. After a close tussle Bank toppled Richard and Williams extended his lead by convincingly beating reigning champion Gilmour by the proverbial mile. Kiwi Minoprio taking his first win of the series by inflicting two penalties on Koo before the start which she never recovered from. China Teams Tan has been improving all the time and by beating Peter Gilmour has another feather in his cap to be proud of. At the end of the second day of racing two more flights remain to be completed. The three teams that definitely face elimination are Tiffany Koo, Adam Minoprio and Tan Wearn Haw. With Peter Holmberg and James Spithill trailing in the results and having two races left including facing off against each other, one of them will also be eliminated tomorrow before the final eight are decided to go on into the quarter finals. |
Crews find out why it is called the Monsoon Cup... Racing got away on flight one in about five knots of westerly breeze. It then turned patchy allowing some crews to make big gains and others to fall by the wayside. The much awaited Gilmour and Minoprio AUS/NZ clash was abandoned as they struggled to complete the first rounding in the strong out going tide. The approaching storm then arrived to bucket down on the crews and completely changed the wind direction for Williams and Col to streak home and win their respective matches.
The building thunderstorm darkened the sky so much that the yachts almost needed head lights to complete flight six. A close battle developed around the course between Williams and Spithill with several lead changes and Spithill coming out on top to inflict Williams first loss today. Gilmour had a comfortable win over Col to lead the round robin series at the end of the day. Bank also shares top place on the leaderboard after dominating Koo throughout the race. Paolo Cian had a close scrape with Holmberg but came out on top in the face of the building storm which forced the race committee to call an end to the days racing. They must be commended for completing six flights which is good by any match racing standards despite the trying conditions and often difficult calls to be made. MONSOON CUP CREW LIST
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Last
minute preparations but everything ready...
Match 2 has Sébastien Col of France’s Areva Challenge for the America’s scheduled to race compatriot Mathieu Richard of the Saba Sailing Team. Col lies seventh in the standings with 29 points after winning Stage 3, the Danish Open, in August, and Richard is sixth in the standings with 30 points after having finished second in Bermuda.
Match 4 in the flight pits a pair of Asians against each other in what is believed to be the first such meeting in an ISAF Grade WC match-race regatta. Malaysia’s Tiffany Koo, winner of the first Malaysian Match Race Championship, will race Singapore’s Wearn Haw Tan, a member of the China Team. Tan placed 13th in his World Tour debut at St. Moritz Match Race in August, while Koo is making her debut. “I’m very excited,” said Koo, who’s celebrating her 22nd birthday today. “I feel lucky to be entered and representing Malaysia, because it’s so hard to get the invites.” |
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE WORLD
TOUR REGATTA ANNOUNCEMENT
Who’s Entered 12 teams including the reigning ISAF Match Racing World Champion and event champion, the current leader of the ISAF Match Racing World Championship standings, five of the top eight in the world championship standings, six of the top 10 in the ISAF Open Match Race Rankings, and six teams representing syndicates for the America’s Cup, including defender Alinghi. REIGNING CHAMPION
ENTRY LIST Jesper Bank (DEN) United Internet Team
The Monsoon Cup has
become one of the biggest sporting events in 2006 PRIZE
PURSE DISTRIBUTION TELEVISION and INTERNET COVERAGE The Semifinal and Final rounds of the Monsoon Cup, on Dec. 2 and 3, will be broadcast live on television and the Internet. Networks such as ESPN/Star Sports Asia, Eurosport, The Sailing Channel, Fox Australia, Sky New Zealand and Showtime Middle East will broadcast the racing for a potential household reach of more than 1 billion viewers. It will also be broadcast live on the World Tour’s broadband Internet channel at www.Sail.tv. (Check local listings or the World Tour Web site for more information.)
ABOUT THE WORLD TOUR Skippers earn points towards the ISAF Match Racing World Championship at the 15 events of the World Tour. The skipper with the most points at the end of the season is the world champion. The World Tour is sanctioned by ISAF, sailing’s
world governing body. The World Tour Partner and Official Car is BMW (Munich,
For more information on the World Match Racing Tour, its competitors and events, please visit the official World Tour Web site, www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com. World Match Racing Tour television programs may be viewed on demand by clicking on the television icon on the home page of the Web site. |
Stage 6 of World Tour has (MYR 1 million) $275,000 purse, nearly $70,000 for winner
In its second year the Monsoon Cup has gained prominent status on the World Tour. It offers the richest prize purse for a sailing event, MR1 million (approximately $275,000), an increase of more than two and a half times last year’s purse, with the winner set to earn MR250,000 (approx. $68,000). The Monsoon Cup was
created last year to bring world class professional sailing to The Monsoon Cup will
be the last ISAF Grade WC match-race regatta before next year’s
Louis Vuitton Cup and Monsoon Cup 2005 winner and 2006 World Champion Peter Gilmour, skipper of PST, is back to defend his title against the likes of Ian Williams and Team Pindar, the current World Championship leader. There also are four Cup syndicates in the mix, including Alinghi (Peter Holmberg), Luna Rossa Challenge (James Spithill), Areva Challenge (Sébastian Col) and Team Shosholoza (Paolo Cian). A fifth Cup team almost entered, represented by BMW ORACLE Racing founder and owner Larry Ellison. Two weeks ago at Stage 5, the Allianz Cup Presented by Oracle, Monsoon Cup technical director Gilmour extended a wild card invitation to Ellison, who finished sixth in his round robin. A formal invitation was extended by Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, but Ellison had to decline.
Koo will be the first Malaysian woman to compete in an ISAF Grade WC match-race regatta. As an added highlight Koo turns 22 years old on Nov. 29, the first scheduled day of racing. “I’m very excited and feeling great to be able to meet and sail against the world’s best skippers,” said Koo, who has been sailing since she was 7 years old. “I’m expecting it’s going to be very tough competition and not easy as this is my first international match race against the professionals, but what is more important is that I know that I am going to gain a lot more experience from the Monsoon Cup.”
The events of the World Tour serve to determine the ISAF Match Racing World Champion. Next year the Monsoon Cup will be the final event of the 2006-’07 season, and will crown the 2007 World Champion. The World Tour is sanctioned
by ISAF, sailing’s world governing body. The World Tour Partner
and Official Car is BMW (Munich, For more information on the World Match Racing Tour, its competitors and events, please visit the official World Tour Web site, www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com. World Match Racing Tour television programs may be viewed on demand by clicking on the television icon on the home page of the Web site. |
New Zealand’s Minoprio wins the inaugural Asian Match Racing Championships and a place in the 2006 Monsoon Cup. Adam Minoprio & his team from New Zealand beat Singapore skipper Tan Wearn Haw 5 – 0 in the finals series dominating from start to finish in the great sailing conditions on Pulau Duyong in Kuala Terengganu, West Malaysia. Going into the day Minoprio had a 1:0 lead over Wearn Haw and never let his opponent into the match despite some aggressive starting maneuvers.
Tan said after the race “we had a pretty steep learning curve early on in this regatta as we haven’t sailed the Foundation 36 yachts before but Adam and his crew did a nice job and gave a lesson in boat handling and match racing!”
With the two entries now finalized for the Monsoon Cup the balance of the field will be confirmed as acceptance of invitations come in from the America’s Cup teams and other highly ranked match racing skippers in the coming weeks. The 2006 Monsoon Cup will be sailed from November 29th – December 3rd.
More news and keep updated at: http://www.monsooncup.com.my Goto the 2005-06 Swedish Match Tour - Inaugural Monsoon Cup 2005 - AY Race Reports here... |
During a must win race between Adam Minoprio and Keith Swinton in the final race of the round robin, Swinton trapped Minoprio in the starting box giving the Kiwi a penalty. During the fierce maneuvering Swinton broke his tiller extension making steering difficult. During the first upwind leg Minoprio gained the favoured southern side and opened up a big lead – enough to clear his penalty turn and remain comfortably in front. On the final top mark turn a lapse of concentration by Minoprio’s bowman Josh Puckey, from New Zealand, caused the spinnaker pole to fall on his head knocking him unconscious. “Josh let the wrong rope go and drop the pole on his head and knock him unconscious. We had our hands full trying to sail the boat four up and beating the Australian team.” Minoprio said half smilingly.
Tan won his match against both Swinton and Hong Kong skipper Martin Kaye in the second round robin to finish on 4 wins from 6 races in the double round robin – the same score as Minoprio. Tan said after the race “we are learning all the time how to get the best out of these Foundation 36 yachts. Both Keith and Adam have taught us a lot over the few days, as they have had more experience sailing these boats” Swinton with three wins was relegated to the petite final with Martin Kaye on 1 wins from the six races of the round robin series. Kaye said “ we brushed some of the rust off that we had yesterday and won our first race against Adam, despite having a prestart penalty. Luckily for us Adam hit the top mark to earn a penalty and negate our penalty, so we just had to stay in front from then on” More news and keep
updated at: http://www.monsooncup.com.my Second Day Results of Asian Match Racing Championships
Adam Minoprio - New Zealand
(Black Match) - 4 wins |
ASIAN MATCH RACING CHAMPIONSHIPS Post Race - Terengganu 14th Sept 2006. Results tied up with 3-way tie for the lead of the Asian Match Racing Championships at the completion of Round Robin One at the end of day 1.
Tan said, “ although we have never sailed the Foundation 36 yachts before and our last match racing event in St. Moritz, Switzerland was sailed on a three-man yacht, however, we are starting to get our team work together which is a challenge for a crew of five on the Foundation 36 yachts. We are pleased to be equal leaders with Swinton and Minoprio who have both sailed these yachts in previous match racing events. The only race that Minoprio lost was the race against Swinton which was sailed in a torrential monsoon downpour. With big wind shifts and low visibility, Minoprio said, “Keith got a jump on us earlier on and did a great job keeping us covered. Tomorrow we’ll do better.” The tricky racecourse gave skipper Martin Kaye from Hong Kong a tough time. He did not win a race today. But Kaye said, “Now we’ve learned our lesson, we’ll definitely do better tomorrow.” |
Four International Teams battle for places in the Monsoon Cup 06
Regatta Manager Skip Lissiman gave everyone a warm welcome 'It is great to see that local and regional sailors being given the opportunity to qualify for this year’s Monsoon Cup,' commented Chief Umpire Tim Brand. He suggests that the commitment of both the government of Malaysia and the State of Terengganu to match race sailing is certain to produce top Malaysian match race sailors and events like the Monsoon Cup. More news at: http://www.monsooncup.com.my
Rounding out the field of teams is Adam Minoprio from Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. He recently won the Grade 3 'International Warren Jones Youth Match Racing Championships' in Perth sailing on the identical Foundation 36 class yachts. Breaking
AY Sept 06 News & Views
- Tiffany
Koo is
Malaysian Match Racing Champion
Royal
Selangor Yacht Club
- 2 teams for National Monsoon Cup qualifiers Team
Selangor Gapurna 2 - Kelana Jaya-based Gapurna Group sponsors
both teams Royal Malaysian
Navy Yacht Club Kedah/RMN
team More news on Tiffany and follow the progress of her RSYC - Team Selangor Gapurna 1 racing exploits will be posted at: http://asianyachting.com/news/TiffanyKoo.htm Goto the 2005-06 Swedish Match Tour - Inaugural Monsoon Cup 2005 - AY Race Reports here... AsianYachting
Ventures Sdn. Bhd. (Co.
No. 627106-T) |
03Dec06
Terengganu, Malaysia.
Final
countdown - It's Peter Holmberg's Alinghi Team...
Semi-final
race 2 saw both Williams and Richard recalled at the start for being on
the course side of the line. Richard recovered the best and set sail up
the windward leg with a good advantage. Gilmour split tacks with Holmberg
at their start favouring the right hand side. Holmberg picked up a good
lift half way up the leg to cross clear of Gilmour on starboard tack.
On the downwind leg Gilmour closed the gap and a dog fight developed on
the up wind leg. Gilmour takes the lead as they approach the top mark.
Richard carries the advantage around the course to even the score with
Williams at 1-1 off the best of three semi-final. Gilmour fends of Holmberg's
advances downwind to finish only 10 meters in front to tie the score at
1-1.
So
onto the deciding race 3 of the semi-final. A little jockying around before
the start saw Williams first across the line. It was not long before Richard
capitalised to take the lead away from Williams. Gilmour engages Holmberg
in the circle of the mating dance before the start and both boats are
level pegging across the line. Gilmour gets a slight advantage and rounds
the windward mark just in front. Penalty calls go un-noticed. Richard
holds onto the advantage to eliminate Williams the present leader of the
World Tour 2-1. Contact occurs between Holmberg and Gilmour and the umpires
award Gilmour a penalty although Holmberg was to leeward and may have
been attempting a tack. The close racing continues and various downwind
tactics are employed by both boats on the sprint to the finish. Holmberg
crosses only seconds ahead to beat the defending Monsoon Cup and WMRT
champion 2-1. So it is Richard and Holmberg in the finals and Williams
versus Gilmour to battle it out in the petite finals.
Finals
Best of five races - Both skippers split tacks at the
start with Richard out to the right and Holmberg out to the left. The
right seemed to have a little advantage with Richard having a boat length
lead at the top mark. Holmberg's close cover downwind rapidly reduces
the lead but Richard holds on to round in front. Holmberg again tries
desperately to close the gap but Richard has the advantage. Richard remains
cool under pressure to take the first of three races in this years final.
The
third race was reduced to two laps and with allot of agression the two
teams proceeded off the start line and despite leading Richard's incured
a penalty up the first beat for being windward boat and not keeping clear.
Keeping a slim lead for the rest of the race Richard did not have enough
time to execute a 360 turn, hit the finish boat and did not keep clear
so gifting Holmberg a second win to lead 2-1.
02Dec06
Terengganu, Malaysia.
This
morning the last two Round Robin flights were shot off in quick succession
to determine the eight quarter finalists. First up, the big match between
Alinghi's Peter Holmberg and Luna Rossa Challenge James Spithill and as
expected produced the most excitement. Both skippers did not expect to
be in the relegation zone this early in proceedings. Spithill won the
start but Holmberg was determined to get the better of him and got an
opportunity at the bottom mark first time around. A close tacking duel
resulted in Spithill getting a penalty with Holmberg sailing clear and
claim the race to draw level on points with Spithill. The next races determined
who goes home early.
A
drifting match developed during the crucial Bank - Spithill and Gilmour
- Richard match up. Spithill led the entire race but within twenty meters
of the finish in ghosting conditions Bank got his bow just in front to
claim victory. This result sees Spithill become the forth boat and first
top ranked skipper to be eliminated. Richard managed to round the windward
mark in front of Gilmour then carry the tide down the leg. As Gilmour
had difficulty getting round the mark, the committee in its wisdom abandoned
the race and decided to wait for more wind to appear. The defending champion
was on shaky ground for a while but after Spithill's loss survived to
go on to the next round.
The
pairings for the Quarter Finals are determined by the placing's from the
round robin and it comes down to the best of five races. Williams kept
on his winning ways to beat Cool by the proverbial mile on race one. Hansen
edged ahead of Richard in the final fifty meters to claim race one of
their encounter. Gilmour did the same to Cian and Holmberg continues on
his great comeback to beat Bank and take advantage of the situation.
Holmberg
squeezed Bank out at the committee boat end as the start gun sounded to
leave them trailing in their wake as they headed up the windward beat.
Making hay while the sun shines Holmberg went on to make it 2-0.
01Dec06
Terengganu, Malaysia.
After
a long wait enough breeze materialized for Aussie PRO John Rosser to start
the racing. The first match-up between Peter Gilmour and his former AC
protegee James Spithill came alive in the pre-start maneuvers with Gilmour
winning the start but a favourable wind shift fifty meters up the course
saw Spithill take over the lead and never look back to record a resounding
win. The approaching rainstorm soon got things moving with big puffs coming
down the course to liven up the racing. Ian Williams preformed a lucky
come from behind up the second beat to scrape in front of Holmberg and
record another win. Sebastien Col defeated Minoprio who at times has shown
good speed but still lacks a win in his debut in this league. Richard's
superior boat handling in the blustery conditions saw them beat Cian as
a heavy downpour descended on the racers.
A
do or die effort by Holmberg to keep the Alinghi Team in the running saw
an exciting match up with Richard in flight 8. A close battle took place
with Holmberg coming out on top to be the match of the flight. Minoprio
looked as he might win his first race but after doing his penalty turn
Cian rolled over the top and deprived them of the win. Williams had no
trouble disposing of Tan from China Team and Hansen stays in the running
for a quarter final spot with a win over Col
France's
Mathieu Richard kept on the pace to out smart Ian Williams in a shock
defeat and keep his Saba Sailing Team at the top of the leaderboard. China
Teams Tan led Holmberg around the entire course only to be rolled over
on the last downwind leg. Col defeated Koo by a huge margin and Hansen
improved his standings with a close win over Jesper Bank.
30Nov06
Terengganu, Malaysia.
After
a short break flight 2 got underway in challenging light and variable
conditions. Bank, Richard and Holmberg got the better of Col, Tan and
Minoprio in the difficult conditions before the rain came again leaving
Gilmour and Hansen to battle it out on a changed course layout in low
visibility. Eventually it was Gilmour that appeared through the downpour
and crossed the line just in front of Hansen to claim his first win this
year.
After
a sumptuous lunch 
In
the light conditions the length of the course was reduced to a little
over 150 meters to get through the bulk of the flights today. Richard
got the better of Minoprio to add a second win to their tally. Wearn Haw
Tan bounced back to defeat Spithill after closing a considerable gap to
win by less than half a boat length. Paolo Cian inflicted a third strait
loss on Björn Hansen who would have liked to start in better fashion.
The more experienced Ian Williams took Tiffany Koo of the course before
the start and returned in front to take a convincing lead and dominate
the entire race.
Although
Sebastien Col incurred a pre-start penalty from James Spithill they jumped
to the front and had enough time to complete the 360 degree penalty turn
before crossing the finish line well in front of Spithill. Paolo Cian
gained an early advantage over Tiffany Koo to add another win to their
tally. Ian Williams continues on his winning ways by defeating Jesper
Bank to lead the round robin scoreboard in the early stages. After redeeming
themselves Wearn Haw Tan fell to Björn Hansen's challenge in the
tricky conditions.
(Crew: Christophe Andre, Benoit Briand, Gilles Favennec, Thierry Peponnet)
29Nov06
Terengganu, Malaysia.
The
official launching was performed by DYMM Sultan of Terengganu, after the
twelve competing crews were given a motorcade escort through town with
the Monsoon Cup trophy and transferred by ferry from the harbour masters
office to Pulau Duyong. Hundreds
of local spectators came out to line the harbour shores and view the spectacular
event take place. A Pro-Am event were the yachting journo's joined the
racing crews for two fleet races was the only scheduled race on day one.
Racing
for the lucrative purse begins in earnest tomorrow with a number of matches
pitting national and regional rivals against each other, as well as leaders
in the Match Racing World Championship standings. 
In
Flight 3, Match 1, Peter Gilmour, the reigning Monsoon Cup and World Match
Racing Champion, races against Peter Holmberg, of America’s Cup
defense syndicate Alinghi. The two are spirited competitors who have a
deft touch on the helm and use the rules to their advantage.
What
Peter Gilmour/AUS and crewmembers Rod Dawson, Kazuhiko Sofuku, Tatsuya
Wakinaga and Yasuhiro Yaji defeated Russell Coutts and crew 2-1 in the
final of the inaugural 2005 event.
ABOUT
STAGE 6
7th —
MYR60,000 (approx. $16,500) 
AT
STAGE 5 — 
KUALA
TERENGGANU, 
“The World Tour is delighted to see the Monsoon Cup increase its
prize money so substantially in such a short amount of time,” said
World Tour President Scott MacLeod. “Organizer 
One
of the goals of the Monsoon Cup is to spread match racing across the region.
In September organizers for the event held the inaugural Malaysian Match
Racing Championship and Asian Match Racing Championship. The winners of
those events, Malaysian Tiffany 
FINAL
RESULTS - Day 3
Minoprio
said after the race “We knew what we had to do and we have a pretty
good feel for both these Foundation 36 yachts and where we wanted to be
on the race course, so felt pretty comfortable out there today”
In
the petite final Australian skipper Keith Swinton dominated the Hong Kong
team lead by Martin Kaye to win 3:0 to take third place in the event.
Swinton said after the racing: “We are disappointed that we didn’t
make the final but we learnt a lot during the event and believe we sailed
pretty well – but at this level you really get punished if you make
the smallest mistake”
Final
Results
For
more information contact:
Teams
of New Zealand and Singapore stay on top of the leader board after the
end of the double round robin on the second day. 
“Adam
sailed really well,” Swinton said, “he managed to keep a good
distance from us even after the penalty we gave him at pre-start.”
Skippers
and crew from as far away as Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and New Zealand
signed on for the Asian Regional Match Racing Championship (Sept 14th
to 16th ) to give Racing Teams from the Austral-Asian region the rare
opportunity to take part on a World Match Racing Tour event at the Monsoon
Cup Match Racing Championship alongside top ranked international sailors
and racing teams in November
Tan
Wearn Haw - Skipper of Team Singapore says 'Pulau Duyong is a
great location and it looks promising for the future development.' He
is looking forward to coming back for future regattas. He finds this event
a great opportunity for them to test their match racing skills and getting
himself prepared for the America’s Cup 07 as navigator on Team China
next year.
Easy
Tiger from Hong Kong led by skipper Martin Kaye
sees this event a great opportunity to develop high performance and racing
in Asia. 'It is great to see Asia organizing events on this scale that
will promise high level of racing,' he says. After winning the 
Youngest skipper in the event, Perth match racing skipper Keith
Swinton, has brought his Black Swan Match Racing
team to Kuala Terengganu for the event. Keith is very familiar with not
only the Foundation 36 yachts, working for the Western Australian Yachting
Foundation on a regular basis when in Perth sailing their fleet of yachts,
but has also been working in Kuala Terengganu for the past week for Tbest
Events with their training programs and corporate events based at the
Terengganu Heritage Bay Club.
Looi
Sing Yew - on the winning youth team in their class on past Raja
Muda Regattas
Lt Cdr Malik Sulaiman - Skipper of one of the RMN Farr
52 Racing Class yachts built by DK Yachts for IRC Racing Class events